Bitch Slaps for Everyone

April 17, 2015 5:57 PM

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In the early days of the sexual revolution, it was commonplace to encounter prudes who flinched at the mere mention of a word like "Fuck." Even if one demonstrated that, by saying the word 50-100 times in a row ("Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck," etc.) it lost its power to shock, the next time someone said "Fuck" in front of that person it still left a bitter taste in their mouth.

Can a word lose its power to shock and offend? Some minority groups have reclaimed long-time slurs ("nigger," "faggot", "queer") as a way of owning them and, in some cases, redefining them. The word "bitch" has become overused in recent years, not only losing much of its power but also losing a grea...